The Narrow-Barred Mackerel, also called the Spanish Mackerel, is a fast, toothy reef predator that will grab a bucktail at Kaiji No Ri. It is not a big earner, but it is a bigger, meaner fish than it first looks, and it is a satisfying species to add to your list. My Trophy came in at 16.618 kg and 140.1 cm for 5,022 coins and 935 XP. This guide covers the spot, the bucktail rig, and honest expectations, plus how to tell it apart from the smaller striped fish on this map.
Not the Striped Bonito: Telling the Barred Fish Apart
Kaiji No Ri has more than one silver, striped member of the mackerel family, so clear this up first. This is the Narrow-Barred Mackerel (Scomberomorus commerson), and it is a much bigger fish than my Striped Bonito. The Narrow-Barred reaches up to about 70 kg, where the Bonito tops out around 10 kg, so any large barred mackerel you land here is this fish. It also has sharper teeth and wavy vertical bars rather than the Bonito’s horizontal stripes. If you were after the small bycatch fish, read the Bonito guide. This is the larger reef predator.
What to Expect: A Species Tick, Not a Payday
Let me be honest about the numbers, because they are small. My Trophy paid 5,022 coins and just 935 XP. That puts it near the bottom of the Kaiji No Ri pack, above the Striped Bonito and the squid but well below the amberjacks, the Dogtooth, and the tuna. The species reaches around 70 kg, so a much bigger one would pay more than my 16 kg Trophy, and I have not yet landed a Unique of this fish, which would be worth more again. But as a coin or XP target, this is not the fish to grind.
The reason to catch it is the species tick and the fun of it. It hits a cast lure hard and fights fast, so it is an enjoyable catch even if the payout is modest. Treat it as a bonus you pick up while working lures near the reefs, not a target you make a special trip for.
It sits in my Kaiji No Ri cluster with my Yellowfin Tuna, Striped Marlin, Albacore, Dogtooth Tuna, Greater Amberjack, Japanese Amberjack, Striped Bonito, Bigfin Reef Squid, Giant Trevally, and Giant Grouper guides.
About the Narrow-Barred Mackerel
Two things from that description shape how you fish it. First, it holds near reefs, so you fish structure rather than open water. Second, it hunts around the clock and is not fussy, which means you can catch it at any time and it will readily chase a cast lure. That makes it one of the easier reef fish to tempt, even if it does not pay much.
Where to Catch Narrow-Barred Mackerel at Kaiji No Ri
I marked and caught mine near coordinates -3494.35, 202.49, close to Green Harbor. Since this is a reef fish, treat the coordinate as a starting area and work the water around the rocky islands and reef edges rather than the open trolling lanes. Launch from Green Harbor, get near structure, and cast your lure around it. Because the fish schools, once you find one you can often pick up several from the same area, so drop a marker buoy and work the spot while they are biting.
Timing: Any Hour Works
I caught mine at 21:42, logged as Early night, at 14 degrees air and 23 degrees water with a light south westerly around 3 m/s. But the game says this fish hunts around the clock, so there is no single best hour for it. Fish it whenever you are working the reefs. If you are here for the bigger, time-sensitive species and pick up a mackerel along the way, that is exactly how this fish is meant to be caught. As always, use Forward Time to move within the day and avoid Next Day, which sells your storage.
The Rig: Light Casting and a Bucktail
This is the exact rig that caught the fish. It is a single-lure casting setup, no sinker, no bait, and no leader:
- Rod: MizuJigu 170 SE
- Reel: JigokuTen 16000 SE
- Main line: Kaigen Fluoro 1.05 mm
- Lure: Bucktail 50 g, #6/0
This is the same MizuJigu 170 SE rig I use for the Japanese Amberjack and other lure fish on this map. As with those, the X Heavy rod is more than a 16 kg mackerel needs, but it is already rigged and casts a bucktail fine, so there is no reason to swap for this bonus fish. One honest caution: the Narrow-Barred has sharp teeth, so if you start losing lures or fish to bite-offs, a steel leader would fix it. I did not need one for my Trophy on the fluorocarbon above, but the option is there if the teeth become a problem.
The Bucktail
The Bucktail is a listed preferred lure for the Narrow-Barred Mackerel, so this is the right tool, not a workaround. It is a casting lure shaped like a small metal fish with a long, fluffy synthetic tail, built for casting, jigging, and trolling, and it draws surface-layer predators well. The mackerel also takes Pilkers, Plugs, Trolling Octopuses, Crankbaits, Minnows, Medium Spoon, and soft baits, along with natural baits like Gulf Shrimp, finger mullets, and scaled sardine. Work the bucktail with an active retrieve so it darts like a fleeing baitfish, and this aggressive predator will chase it down.
Landing It
There is no drama landing this fish on the heavy rig. It runs fast and shakes, as a mackerel does, but at 16 kg on tackle built for much bigger fish it never threatens your line. Keep steady pressure through its runs, do not give it slack, and lift it by hand once it is at the boat, no crane needed. The only thing to watch is the teeth near the lure, so handle it as you would any toothy fish.
Common Mistakes
Confusing it with the Striped Bonito. They are different fish. The Narrow-Barred is far bigger, has sharper teeth, and wears wavy vertical bars rather than the Bonito’s horizontal stripes. Any large barred mackerel here is this fish.
Fishing open water. The Narrow-Barred holds near reefs, not out in the open trolling lanes. Work the structure around the rocky islands.
Expecting a payday. At around 5,000 coins for a Trophy, this is a species tick and a fun bonus, not an earner. Fish it while you target bigger species.
Ignoring the teeth. If you lose lures or fish to bite-offs, switch to a steel leader. The fluorocarbon worked for me, but the teeth are sharp.
Pressing Next Day. It sells your whole storage. Use Forward Time to move within the same day instead.